GenCon, Lagoon Story Game

Greetings! I first want to apologize for not launching the monthly newsletter as planned, and let you know it will launch this summer. Life took me on some strange detours away from games, but now I'm back and excited to expand the world of Lagoon!

This update covers:

GenCon: Promos and Art Decks

Lagoon Story Game

Extra Kickstarter Copies of Lagoon: Land of Druids

GenCon

GenCon promo: Deluxe wooden bear druid tokens

I'm exhibiting at GenCon for the first time this year! Please visit us at booth 2835 in Entrepreneur's Avenue to pick up the new Lagoon promo (above) or any of our past promos.

The new Lagoon game I discuss below uses cards like the one pictured above, and I'm preparing to order some fresh prototype decks now. I thought it would be fun to offer you the chance to get a deck too. There is no game you can play with these cards right now, so at this point you can only enjoy them as jumbo sized art cards (3.5″ x 5.75″).

Here's the deal. You can preorder a deck for $24 and pick it up at GenCon in the 3 Hares Games booth. I'll stop taking preorders at midnight PST on Saturday, July 18. These are print on demand cards, so I won't be printing many decks beyond the preorders.

Lagoon Story Game

Last year I prototyped a 54-card Lagoon deck, with one card for each site in the original game. Since then, I've been obsessed with designing a story game using the cards. The archetypal illustrations of Lagoon were intended to be natural building blocks for storytelling. But after countless hours poring over the art that I myself directed, the images of Lagoon remain mysterious and enigmatic even to me. They undoubtedly speak to me, but no matter how many stories they tell me I always feel there are more secrets to be discovered.

And that's the Lagoon I want to give players, a magical wellspring of mythological storytelling possibilities. The character of the world will always be unmistakably Lagoon, but the mythology will be at once both malleable and unpredictable. There will be no fixed or authoritative background story, so players can birth a unique mythology and history of Lagoon with every play.

In the game, each player will guide their druid in exploration of the world, forging a unique destiny for themselves against the backdrop of Lagoon's collective destiny. Your energy karma will influence the nature and tone of your encounters, and druids aligned with the dominant energy will experience a very different world from those whose alignment is threatened by it. Of course, players can shift this balance many times over the course of the game, in addition to forming alliances and breaking them, achieving triumph and suffering defeat, until the ultimate destiny unfolds.

That's my vision, and I'm passionate about it. It's an ambitious project in early stages, but I have some clever ideas to implement it. I've also been conducting extensive research on mythology, drawing primarily from the genius of Joseph Campbell, his books, lectures and interviews. No one has done more to illuminate the role of myth in human experience, and Campbell's insights are strongly influencing the shape of Lagoon.

Another exciting aspect of a flexible mythology is that there's room for more ideas and interpretations, and I would love for your help developing Lagoon's mythology! Eventually, I intend to setup a website where you can submit ideas and suggestions for the mythology of the sites in Lagoon that speak to you.

Lastly, I have a larger vision for these Lagoon cards beyond the story game. I am developing an expansion to Lagoon: Land of Druidsusing the same cards. Having a card for each site in the original game opens up fertile design space to be explored!

Extra Kickstarter Copies of Lagoon: Land of Druids

I have a limited number of surplus Kickstarter editions of Lagoon: Land of Druids, and wanted to make them available to backers. Naturally, these copies include the wooden tokens and the promo tile, and would make a great gift!

Most of the remaining copies are in the US, but there are a handful in Canada, the EU, and Asia. If you are interested in buying any, please email me: support [AT] 3haresgames.com. The following prices include shipping, and will be payable using Paypal:

After GenCon, I will talk to Chad at BGG about whether they'd be interested in having some of these other promos in the BGG Store. That's a lot more practical for me than trying to setup my own distribution system. Stay tuned!

Superbacker

Superbacker

Any chance of making these promos available to those who backed the project? I'm also still wanting to get a copy of Mytreia's Glory / Cosmic Vault. I don't mind paying for these items or for the shipping. If I did mind then I wouldn't have backed Lagoon at the original KS, even if you have some mark up to make a profit, those who backed, chances are, are pretty certain to pay the prices. The BGG Forest sentinel tile is a good example, $5 for the tile, $5 for shipping to the UK, I would be happy to pay a little more.

Superbacker

It would be awesome if you have all prior promos, and the deck, and of course the full Lagoon game available as add-ons for your next Kickstarter campaign. Just make sure you have enough -- looks like they'll be really popular!

Superbacker

Superbacker

my suggestion is to have an add-on on the lagoon expansion KS (when you are ready to launch it) to let us add-on the promos and deck. either that, or have a shipping option for the pre-order deck (and you could have a add x extra to get a promo set or something).
I want the deck, but since I won't be going to gen-con, I can't pre-order it, since you said you have to pick it up at gen-con. So hopefully you will have it as an add-on of some sort on your next KS.

another idea, have you thought of teeming up with meeple source to have them make 'upgrade' pieces for the game?

Superbacker

As far as distributing the promos, keep in mind that if they become too difficult to get you'll actually hurt your fan base. People will start price gouging and what not. Though I understand your logic, and even though I'll be at Gen Con, I think it would be nice to look into the BGG Store more closely after the con.

Superbacker

Hmm... bundle somethings to be seen with the next KS campaign? Nah, still a big pain... Well, the thing is I want all the promos, and the cards, and everything Lagoon! It's already painful that I can't get the promos because I'm in the wrong continent... :(

I really would like to make the promos available more broadly, since I have plenty of them and the whole idea is to give them away to fans as a token of gratitude. But setting up a web store to distribute promos which aren't intended to make me any money isn't very practical for me at this time. Things get complicated pretty quickly when you're processing requests for 7 different promos, shipping needs to be calculated for anywhere in the world, customs forms must be completed, money collected, trips to the post office made, etc. It's still just me on the job, and only part time. I'm open to suggestions that can get the promos you want in your hands without making considerable work for me.

Cole: I'll have all the past promos at GenCon.

Charcoal: Yes, there is a way to open a portal to a new and exciting land.

Superbacker

@David -- Thrilled to hear about the future of Lagoon! BUT, at the same time, a bit dismayed because of the great stuff on hand only for people able to go to GenCon. Is there some way us backers could get the promos, past and present? Maybe the same way as the cards, a preorder via your website?